I don’t need to tell you that as Howard Webb blew his full-time whistle today I was mightily happy and relieved. Normal service resumed as we finished above Spurs, again, and at their expense of Champions League football.

The Arsenal rarely do it the easy way and those 7-odd minutes after Bale scored the winner for Spurs, I was rather anxious. Newcastle never looked like scoring today, but in football you just never know.

Well done Arsenal today – great goal and performance from Dave. For me, player of the season. After his costly error vs City, he has been the main reason for our 11 game unbeaten run to ensure we finished in the top 4.

To gloat or not to gloat?

I am not usually one to gloat – it always comes back to bite you. Like many Gooners living in North London, there is a 99.9% chance a member of their family, good friends and/or pets are Spurs fans, and gloating is just not worth it, although inside we’re jumping up and down for joy.

But even after today – Spurs fans are ridiculing us for celebrating coming 4th and coming above them again. If the shoe was on the other foot it would be an open-top bus parade through N17.

Well, time to enjoy it. This has been the worst Arsenal team in Wenger’s era and the best for Spurs in the EPL era, and we still came above them.

We sold our best player, still financing a world-class stadium and had a dreadful start/middle to the season. We lost at WHL and found ourselves 7 points behind them, and they had real momentum (an ‘upward spiral’ if you will). We had civil war in the stands (a ‘downwards spiral’ if you will) and being in the Europa League seemed hard to achieve and aspirational. So come 6.00pm today, sorry for enjoying it.

Correct, 4th isn’t a trophy. But to be able to compete in the CL for 16 straight years is some achievement. Wait until Spurs start their stadium construction. They don’t compete in the CL now even before that.

I believe Arsenal have reached a real breakthrough time now. The new kit deal, EPL TV money and the renewed Emirates deal gives Arsene something he hasn’t had in 10 years – unconstrained finances for purchases. Now he has to prove he can find world-class talent that Utd, City or Chelsea don’t already want. Hard to do but CL football helps a hell of a lot. I believe we could witness Arsene’s next generation actually achieving something. This generation hasn’t been great but pure resilience at the end ensured we achieved the bare minimum.